Commerce is the process whereby producers produce
goods that are consumed by consumers in exchange for payment. However, it
is rare that consumers purchase goods directly from producers. Instead,
there are likely to be many intermediary layers of distributors and
retailers. Distribution-retailing systems are often developed out of
economic efficiency, either by design or spontaneously or a combination of
both. But there will be instances when the distribution-retailing system
is a cultural tradition, and such is the kiosco in Buenos Aires.

The English word kiosk has its origin in
the Turkish word kösk, which is derived from the Persian word kushk meaningportico. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the kiosk as
"a small structure with one or more open sides that is used to vend
merchandise (as newspapers) or services (as film developing)." Thus,
the most common image of a kiosk is that of a newsstand (see our article on newsstands
in Latin America) which sells principally newspapers and magazines, as
well as candy snacks and cigarettes.

(photo credit: Marcelo Salup)

The Buenos Aires kiosco de
barrio
is a variant of the regular newsstand (which is called kiosco de diarios or kiosco
de revistas for differentiation), with these distinguishing
features:

First, the Buenos Aires kiosco is usually
miniature-sized, sometimes just the size of a large closet. Very
often, it presents only a glass front and an open window to pedestrians to
conduct transactions. There is no street entrance, and the operator
(known as the kiosquero) enters through a backdoor from a larger
store (such as a bakery, pharmacy or stationery store) or even a
private home.

Secondly, the kiosco seldom carries newspapers or
magazines, which are carried by the specialized newsstands. Rather,
the main offerings in the kiosco are tobacco products and a large
variety of candies (especially alfajores!) and snacks.
Surprisingly, given the small size of the kiosco, the product
offerings can also include chewing gum, batteries, lighters, key chains, disposable razors, combs,
soap, toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo,
deodorant, aspirin pills, cold remedies, indigestion aids, ballpoint pens
(biromes), notebooks, plastic toys, tampons,
condoms and all manners of things. If the space permits a small
refrigerator to be installed, the kiosco will also sell mineral
water, carbonated soft drinks, fruit juices and beer. This is
an entire general store encapsulated in a closet-sized space.

Thirdly, the kiosco is a neighborhood beacon, and
there is almost always one (or more) on any street block in Buenos Aires. Kioscos
are usually brightly lit with neon lights and are often open twenty-four
hours per day. At night, when the streets are dark, the sight of the
well-lit kiosco is comforting and reassuring. This is what
makes the kiosco a distinct and integral way of life in Buenos
Aires.

Fourthly, the kiosco is institutionally connected
to the chronic unemployment (15%-20% recently) and underemployment (35%
recently) in Argentina, as well as
the precarious economic conditions of pensioners living on fixed incomes.
A kiosco
requires a relatively small investment to initiate (namely, obtaining a
kiosco license, minor construction work and stocking a small inventory)
and is inexpensive to operate (namely, the electricity bills, plus the
time for an unskilled person, often the owner, who is unemployed
otherwise).

Today, many small traditional institutions are being
threatened by mass marketers. For example, small independent bookstores find it difficult to compete against super bookstore chains which have huge
economies of scale that enable them to offer many more book titles at sharp
discounts. In this age of hypermarts and megamalls, could the mom-and-pop
hole-in-the-wall kiosco be an endangered species?

We will now cite some survey data from the TGI Argentina
study. The relevant part of this study is based upon 2,954 persons
between the ages of 12 and 75 years old in Gran Buenos Aires interviewed in
2001. The next graph shows the types of shopping places that these survey
respondents have patronized in the previous 4 weeks. 38% of the people
patronized kioscos during this time period.

The next graph shows the patronage of kioscos broken out by
age/sex. The higher incidences of patronage among the younger people
reflect the fact that candies and cigarettes are more likely to be purchased by
them.

From the survey data presented here, we can draw a couple of
conclusions. By virtue of its smallness, the kiosco is not the
bakery where the daily bread is purchased, it is not the supermarket where
groceries and household products are purchased for the entire week, it is not
the marketplace where fresh meat and vegetables are purchased, and it is not the
shopping mall where clothes, music recordings and books are purchased. The
kiosco is the neighborhood place where people can buy small items such as
candies and cigarettes quickly and conveniently. These are just the things
that one would not never go into a Carrefour hypermart and get on one of the 20
long checkout lines to pay for.

Of course, this is no guarantee for the kioscos to
endure forever in Buenos Aires. As we suggested, the presence of kioscos
is inextricably linked to the chronic unemployment and underemployment over the
past few decades, and they may persist until those underlying economic problems
are eliminated. As a contrast, we can look at Japan, which is a country
with a history of labor shortage and an aversion towards importing foreign
laborers. Today, Japanese streets are lined with numerous vending machines
that sell candies, soft drinks, condoms, lotteries, newspapers, magazines, adult
erotic comic books and even smelly little girls' panties for sexual perverts. But while the vending machine may be a streamlined
model of economic efficiency, somehow we think that we prefer the more intimate
and personable kiosco.